Guided Notes- Life After the Western Roman Empire

Content Objectives:
SWBAT:
1. Identify major geographic features of Europe on a map
2. Relate the usefulness or difficulties geography creates to the formation and growth of
European societies after 476 CE
3. Analyze the ways in which Europe had to rebuild after the Western Roman Empire’s
collapse in 476 CE and the role the barbarians played in rebuilding Europe
4. Describe how the system of feudalism gave Europe structure politically, socially,
culturally, and economically after 476 CE

Language Objectives:
SWBAT:
1. Visually interpret the vocabulary section of the guided notes in class and write down a
predicted definition based upon the image in the same row as the term.
2. Write down predicted definitions based upon the image in the same row as the term.
3. Complete written guided notes and written analysis and description of feudalism’s
development

Food For Thought Section:

1. What do you think happens when order, rules, and society disappear?

2. How would you act differently, or would you act the same as you do today?

Vocabulary Building Activity

Instructions:
1. Create your own predicted definition or explanation of what the term is or means
2. Find a dictionary definition of the term that you can understand
3. The terms barbarians, feudalism, and Charlemagne are done in the Modelling section of
the Interactive Lecture

Term (New/Old) Student Predicted Teacher Definition Image Representation

Definition/ Explanation
Barbarians (Old) People who were not A member of a
Romans community or tribe not
belonging to one of the
great civilizations
Feudalism (New) A social system based on The dominant social
loyalty, land, and power system in medieval
Europe, where protection
could be exchanged for
goods, labor, loyalty,
food, or obligated shelter.

Manor (New)

Nobles (New)

Knights (New)

Artisans (Old)

Serfs (New)

Peasants (New)
Charlemagne (New) King of the Franks, King of the Franks,
Barbarian King Charles I of the Holy
Roman Empire

Waterways (New)

Arable (New)

Plains (New)

Peninsula (New)

Mountain Ranges
(Carpathian, Pyrenees,
Swiss Alps) (New)
KWL+ Chart
Instructions:
1. Fill in the blanks on the previous knowledge about the fall of the Roman Empire and its
lasting contribututions
2. Before beginning the lesson, write your own questions about what you want to know
about medieval Europe, feudalism, and life after the Western Roman Empire
3. After the lesson is over, review your lecture notes and put what you learned in the L
column
4. If any of the L column’s content answers a question you had in the W column, highlight
them in green
5. If there are still unanswered questions in the W column, highlight those in red. These
will be used in the next unit.
6. Finally categorize the learning done in the L column according to the key below these
instructions.
Key:
(G-S) = Geography influences Society
(G-P) = Geography influences Politics
(G-E) = Geography influences Economics
(RI) = Roman Influences
(B-S) = Barbarians influences on Society
(B-P) = Barbarians influences on Politics
(B-E) = Barbarians influences on Economics

K (know) W (want to know) L (learned)

Lasting Roman cultural
contributions include
, , and
. (3 blanks)
Rome was sacked by
in CE. (2
Blanks)
The Byzantine or
Roman Empire lasted
beyond the fall of the
. (2 Blanks)
Rome fell due to ,
, , and . (4
Blanks)
The were enemies
of the Romans. (1 Blank)
Byzantine Emperors
attempted to the
Roman Empire after the
fall of Rome, but .
(2 Blanks)
The made
themselves kings across
the former . (2 blanks)
Who’s In Charge After 476 CE?

According to the map above:

1. Which barbarians conquered Rome?

2. Where did the Franks settle?

3. Which barbarians became the people of Britain?

4. Which two barbarian tribes conquered the most land in Europe?

Connecting Past Learning to Present Learning

5. Why did the Western Roman Empire’s collapse leave Europe needing to rebuild society
from the ground up? 1-3 sentences

6. What makes a society? 3-4 sentences

Case Studies: Rome and Its Barbarian Kings and The Franks Move into
Modern Day France

7. In what ways did the Ostrogoths and Franks become more “Roman”?

8. Predict how the incorporation of these Roman traits helped rebuild Europe politically
and socially.
The Rise of Feudalism

9. What does the King give to his subjects? Is this something that is given to all social
classes in the feudal pyramid?

10. Which social class, aside from the King, benefits the most from feudalism?

11. Knowing that the peasant class:

a. Does not own land
b. Can be tied to the land
c. Farms other people’s land
d. Makes goods for purchase by the higher social classes
e. And pays rent and taxes to the higher social classes
Describe how their daily lives might be like and discuss whether or not peasants could
move up in feudal society?

Checkpoint for Understanding

12. How does feudalism change the political face of Europe after the fall of the Western
Roman Empire?
Geography’s Role in the Rise of Feudalism

According to the map above:

13. Where would the most arable land be in medieval Europe?

14. What parts of Europe would be the most useful for sea trade?

15. Would manors in the plains regions of Europe access to natural barriers or defenses
from invaders? Why or why not?
Use the diagram above to answer the questions.
16. If this manor were to be attacked, where would the peasants seek safety and why?

17. If you were a serf, where in the manor would your life be mostly spent?

Checkpoint For Understanding

18. Why were large manors and towns forming across Europe instead of small villages?

Synthesis Activity
19. If you were living in feudal society, what level of society would you like to be a part of,
where would you prefer to live, and why? What are the advantages or disadvantages of
this social class and location? 5-7 sentences